The Haunted Man

7digitalWhat we said:After three years away, the first musical missive Natasha Khan leaked from the new Bat For Lashes album was ‘Laura’, an understated piano ballad, adorned only by muted horns and Khan’s plaintive vocals. Beautiful as it is, it proves somewhat of a red herring for album number three. Featuring input from Beck and PJ Harvey’s long-standing producer, Rob Ellis, The Haunted Man finds Khan shaking off her emotional baggage, and deftly balancing organic and electronic sounds, across a plethora of lush, baroque-pop. For our money, the highlights come in the stuttering beats and twinkling synths of ‘Marilyn’ and the undulating melody of atmospheric album-closer ‘Deep Sea Diver’.